Have you seen my little ones?
by Urby
Summary: Some of Elise's spiderlings have run off, and she has no idea where to look. Help comes in unexpected places, though... (May be continued if I get some ideas?)


Fear was not something that Elise experienced - it was something she used, not something she felt. And yet, there was no other way to put it: she was starting to get a little afraid her spiderlings were growing a mind of their own.

Sure, they still obeyed her every whim, sacrificed themselves wordlessly for her designs, and channeled her power as well as ever. But they were starting to do things she hadn't exactly planned. They would hesitate to pounce or act impulsively, revealing her position. Once, they had ignored the truce that all champions respected when a nexus went down and nibbled another champion to death while the tallies were being drawn up. She had to admit, it was funny, but the way the summoners whispered amongst themselves afterwards was decidedly less so.

And now, even while she was wearing her human guise, she could feel that her spiderlings were about. Worse, she did not know where they were.

This was _not_ proper behavior for mindless creations.

"Excuse me. Have you seen my little ones?" she asked as she glided about, questioning any champion or summoner she came across. She was scheduled for a match in ten minutes, and while she could afford to go to battle with a few less spiderlings, she had a sinking suspicion that those few spiderlings could get into a lot of trouble while she was out. And that kind of attention she could not afford.

Honestly, she had only turned her back on them for a few short moments as she assumed her "Death Blossom" guise after the request of her summoner, and the next thing she knew, they were out of sight and had refused to disappear after she had reassumed her human form. This was unheard of.

Elise was only met with headshakes and quick greetings from the people she passed by. She could summon more spiderlings to help her out with this endeavor...but her spider form tended to cause panic in the Institute's courtyard, and the last thing she needed was more lost spiderlings. She couldn't possibly risk that. Really, it was quite infuriating.

Two minutes left before she would be penalized for not showing. She sighed darkly, her arachnid legs flexing nervously. She needed to compose herself before entering the battlefield...a trip to the League washroom was in order.

She slid inside, nearly coughing because of how steamy it was within. Either there was a leak, or someone must have left a shower on for too long.

"Is anyone inside?" Elise asked, holding the door open. "Do you require...assistance?"

There was no response for a moment. Then she heard a faucet turning off and another female voice say: "No, we're quite fine here. Just relaxing in the makeshift jungle. Come inside, the children won't hurt you."

Actual children were not allowed in the washrooms reserved for champions - save Annie, of course. So that really left only one possibility. Elise stepped into the steaming chamber, towards the sound of the voice, and found Zyra sitting cross-legged in the middle of an open shower stall. Two of her plants were in rampant bloom, sprawling over the walls. A few of their leaves tilted themselves towards Elise as she approached. And sure enough, three pale spiderlings were crawling about around Zyra's hair and shoulders.

"There you are, my pets," Elise said, beckoning the spiderlings to her side. They skittered towards her, leaping into her hand. "I apologize for any mischief they have caused."

"No need. They just wanted to investigate the flowers and behaved very well," Zyra said, playing with a vine that had reached down towards her. The blooms on the plants were quite similar to orchid-like spiderlings, though their colors were vibrant red and purple. "Very chatty, though. Their mother is a better conversationalist, I hope?"

Elise waited as the spiderlings vanished, waiting to be conjured again. She wasn't actually the spiderlings' mother, and being called such gave her a bit of pause. "Of course. But I have to run - I have an appointment I have to keep."

"That's a shame. Will you spring by another time? Your darlings play well with my children, and I've missed the feeling of spiders in my foliage."

"Certainly," Elise said. If nothing else, she could observe the spiderlings' independent behavior.

Zyra held out her hand. Elise stared at it for a moment.

"Humans shake their hands to agree on something, do they not?" Zyra asked.

Elise chuckled. "They usually say 'Let's shake on it' first, or something similar," she said, clasping Zyra's hand for a short shake. Despite the heat and steam, it was pleasantly cool.


End file.
